Doesn't it seem wrong that my kids are picky eaters when their mom is a trained chef and recipe developer!? Well, it's true. That's why I was happily surprised when my 10-year-old went out of his comfort zone and devoured (yes, devoured!) this amazingly healthy red quinoa vegetarian chili! He especially loved it over his nachos. (Whatever works, right?) Perfect for a busy weeknight, you can whip this one-pot comfort food meal up in just 30 minutes, and I bet your entire family will absolutely love it!

30-Minute Vegetarian Red Quinoa Chili

My kids love this no-meat one-pot chili recipe!

By Valentina Kenney Wein

Published: March 31, 2014

Prep Time: 5 min

Cook time: 25 min

Servings: 4 to 6

Ingredients:

water or vegetable stock: 1 cup

uncooked red quinoa: ½ cup

olive oil: to coat the pan

yellow onion, cut into a small dice: ¾ cup

fresh garlic, minced: 1 teaspoon

chili powder: 1 tablespoon

ground cumin: 2 teaspoons

green chilies, fire roasted and diced : 1 (4-ounce) can

diced tomatoes in tomato juice: 1 (28-ounce) can

kidney beans, drained: 1 (15-ounce) can

maple syrup: 2 teaspoons

sea salt: ½ teaspoon

Directions:

Step 1: Pour the water or stock into a small pot, place it over high heat, and bring to a boil. Add the quinoa, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until all of the liquid has been absorbed, about 15 minutes. Set aside.

Step 2: While the quinoa is cooking, coat the bottom of a large pot with olive oil and place it over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic, and sauté until the onions are soft, about 5 minutes.

Step 3: Add the chili powder, ground cumin, and green chilies to the pan. Sauté until this is very aromatic, about 1 minute.

Step 4: Deglaze the pan by adding the tomatoes (with all of the juice). Use a wooden spatula to scrape the bottom of the pan to work any bits of food that are stuck back into the mixture.

Step 5: Add the kidney beans, cooked quinoa, maple syrup, and salt, and stir to combine. Cook on medium-low to be sure the beans become hot, about 2 minutes.

Valentina's passion is food, and she loves spending time in her "kitchen retreat," as she refers to that room in her house. Valentina develops recipes for creative and comforting food that works perfectly for casual entertaining. Both her recipes and food photography have been featured many times on popular food websites and in print. Valentina shares her beautiful photographs as well as new and interesting recipes almost daily on her blog, Cooking on the Weekends.

Outside the worlds of food and photography, Valentina's other passion is her family (including her two young boys, her husband and her puppy, Maple.)

To learn more about Valentina and where her work has been featured, visit her About page at Cooking On The Weekends.